US envoy to Japan Caroline Kennedy meets emperor

Newly appointed US Ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy (2nd R) shakes hands with Japan's Emperor Akihito after presenting her credentials to him as Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida (R) holds the credentials, and others look on, during a ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, in this picture taken and provided by the Imperial Household Agency of Japan on November 19, 2013. [Photo/Agencies]

TOKYO - Newly arrived US Ambassador Caroline Kennedy presented her credentials to Japan's emperor on Tuesday, traveling by horse-drawn carriage into the Imperial Palace in downtown Tokyo.

Hundreds of onlookers snapped pictures and waved as Kennedy, 55-year-old daughter of the late President John F. Kennedy, waved back from inside the carriage.

In an unusual move, national broadcaster NHK showed Kennedy's arrival at the Imperial Palace live, following the entourage from the air once it entered the palace gates.

It is customary for a newly arrived ambassador to meet with Emperor Akihito to present credentials.

The procession was accompanied by palace officials in European-style ceremonial costumes, including a footman in breaches, led by a horseman astride a white horse.

Kennedy was appointed ambassador after helping President Barack Obama's re-election campaign. She is the first woman to serve as US ambassador to Japan, the United States' fourth-largest trading partner and home to the Navy's 7th Fleet and 50,000 American troops.